Overall Rating Gold - expired
Overall Score 65.92
Liaison Christie-Joy Hartman
Submission Date Dec. 21, 2018
Executive Letter Download

STARS v2.1

James Madison University
OP-1: Greenhouse Gas Emissions

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 3.40 / 10.00 Abram Kaufman
Energy Conservation and Sustainability Manager
Facilities Management Engineering & Sustainability
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Part 1 

Has the institution conducted a GHG emissions inventory that includes all Scope 1 and 2 emissions? :
Yes

Does the institution’s GHG emissions inventory include all, some or none of its Scope 3 GHG emissions from the following categories?:
All, Some, or None
Business travel Some
Commuting All
Purchased goods and services None
Capital goods None
Waste generated in operations All
Fuel- and energy-related activities not included in Scope 1 or Scope 2 All
Other categories None

A copy of the most recent GHG emissions inventory:
A brief description of the methodology and/or tool used to complete the GHG emissions inventory, including how the institution accounted for each category of Scope 3 emissions reported above:
Utilized Version 9 of the Clean Air-Cool Planet Campus Carbon Calculator. For more information on the methodology used to account for each category of Scope 3 emissions, please see below and refer to the attached GHG emissions inventory: Business Travel: Calculated miles from flight records from the official air travel contractor for JMU in 2005. Data is extrapolated for future years based on employee FTE growth Commuting: Automobile sources based on campus population and mode split data from employee and student surveys from 2008. Student bus commuting based on revenue miles and fuel economy of buses obtained from public transit department Waste generated in operations: Data is tracked by the Facilities Recycling Department who manages all waste activities on campus Fuel- and energy-related activities not included in Scope 1 or Scope 2: Calculated by Campus Carbon Calculator

Has the GHG emissions inventory been validated internally by personnel who are independent of the GHG accounting and reporting process and/or verified by an independent, external third party?:
Yes

A brief description of the internal and/or external verification process:
Facilities Management (FM) personnel conducted the accounting and reporting. The completed GHG emissions inventory was reviewed internally by the Office of Environmental Stewardship and Sustainability, which is in a separate unit from FM. Select results were discussed between personnel in both units.

Documentation to support the internal and/or external verification process:
---

Does the institution wish to pursue Part 2 and Part 3 of this credit? (reductions in Scope 1 and Scope 2 GHG emissions):
Yes

Part 2 

Gross Scope 1 and Scope 2 GHG emissions:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Gross Scope 1 GHG emissions from stationary combustion 34,667.60 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 7,889.60 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Gross Scope 1 GHG emissions from other sources 2,291.40 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 1,450.70 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Gross Scope 2 GHG emissions from purchased electricity 46,381.20 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 38,917.70 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Gross Scope 2 GHG emissions from other sources 7,634.10 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 21,569.60 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Total 90,974.30 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 69,827.60 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent

Start and end dates of the performance year and baseline year (or three-year periods):
Start Date End Date
Performance Year July 1, 2015 June 30, 2016
Baseline Year July 1, 2008 June 30, 2009

A brief description of when and why the GHG emissions baseline was adopted (e.g. in sustainability plans and policies or in the context of other reporting obligations):
---

Figures needed to determine total carbon offsets:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Third-party verified carbon offsets purchased (exclude purchased RECs/GOs) 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Institution-catalyzed carbon offsets generated 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Carbon sequestration due to land that the institution manages specifically for sequestration 124 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 124 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Carbon storage from on-site composting 104 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Carbon offsets included above for which the emissions reductions have been sold or transferred by the institution 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Net carbon offsets 228 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 124 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent

If total performance year carbon offsets are greater than zero, provide:

A brief description of the offsets in each category reported above, including vendor, project source, verification program and contract timeframes (as applicable):
Carbon sequestration due to land that the institution manages specifically for sequestration - from 24 acres at the University Farm and 87 acres of forested lands in the EJC Arboretum. Carbon storage from on-site composting - results from food waste composted from on-campus dining halls in conjunction with Black Bear Composting

The reporting fields in the table below are reserved for institutions that have NOT already accounted for renewable energy purchases (including RECs and GOs) in their Scope 2 GHG emissions calculations. Other institutions - including all SIMAP users - should report zero ('0') to avoid double-counting. 

Emissions reductions attributable to Renewable Energy Certificate (REC) or Guarantee of Origin (GO) purchases:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Emissions reductions attributable to REC/GO purchases 1,915 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 2,450.40 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent

A brief description of the purchased RECs/GOs including vendor, project source and verification program:
Based on the modeled electricity consumption of the Grace Street Housing Project, Green-e Certified RECs were purchased from Renewable Choice Energy on 9/9/2015 to cover 100% of projected kWh consumption for two years. In total, 3,773,022 kWh of RECs were purchased which provided 1,915 metric tons of CO2 Equivalent reduction in emissions.

Adjusted net Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Adjusted net Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions 88,831.30 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 67,253.20 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent

Figures needed to determine “Weighted Campus Users”:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Number of students resident on-site 6,289 5,796
Number of employees resident on-site 9 2
Number of other individuals resident on-site and/or staffed hospital beds 0 0
Total full-time equivalent student enrollment 20,877 18,225
Full-time equivalent of employees (staff + faculty) 3,177 2,925
Full-time equivalent of students enrolled exclusively in distance education 342 0
Weighted campus users 19,358.50 17,312

Adjusted net Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions per weighted campus user:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Adjusted net Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions per weighted campus user 4.59 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent 3.88 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent

Percentage reduction in adjusted net Scope 1 and Scope 2 GHG emissions per weighted campus user from baseline:
0

Part 3

Gross floor area of building space, performance year:
6,761,579 Gross square feet

Floor area of energy intensive building space, performance year:
Floor Area
Laboratory space 51,748 Square feet
Healthcare space 16,240 Square feet
Other energy intensive space 402,560 Square feet

EUI-adjusted floor area, performance year:
7,300,115 Gross square feet

Adjusted net Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions per unit of EUI-adjusted floor area, performance year:
0.01 MtCO2e per square foot

Optional Fields 

Scope 3 GHG emissions, performance year:
Emissions
Business travel 1,264.50 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Commuting 10,040.40 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Purchased goods and services 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Capital goods 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Fuel- and energy-related activities not included in Scope 1 or Scope 2 6,347.60 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Waste generated in operations 588 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent
Other categories 0 Metric tons of CO2 equivalent

A brief description of the institution’s GHG emissions reduction initiatives, including efforts made during the previous three years:
---

The website URL where information about the programs or initiatives is available:
---

Additional documentation to support the submission:
---

Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
*Performance year analysis for 15-16, so campus user data for the corresponding time period was manually input rather than copying IC-3 data for 16-17. Notes for entries into OP-1: Responsible party for campus user data: Office of Institutional Research, contacts: Tina Grace, Planning/Policy Analyst, and Jacob Mayiani Loorimirim, Research Analyst. Student FTE from IPEDS 12 mo. Faculty/staff FTE from IPEDS HR; graduate assistants in instructional departments not included. Data for full-time equivalent of students enrolled exclusively in distance education is not available for the baseline year so this was left blank. Notes for attached emissions inventory: Student and faculty/staff data in attached emissions inventory from Office of Institutional Research, contacts: Tina Grace, Planning/Policy Analyst, and Jacob Mayiani Loorimirim, Research Analyst. Student data from Head Count, Fall 2015 Census (Statistical Summary Table 2-5). Faculty/staff data from IPEDS HR; graduate assistants in instructional departments not included. In June 2014, a municipal solid waste burning resource recovery facility that supplied heating and cooling for the East Campus ceased operations. As a result, the University had to substantially increase its natural gas consumption in the main campus power plant to meet the energy needs for this portion of campus. This resulted in a shift from scope 2 to scope 1 emissions for the University and an increase in the overall emissions due to the loss of the municipal solid waste as a fuel source.

The information presented here is self-reported. While AASHE staff review portions of all STARS reports and institutions are welcome to seek additional forms of review, the data in STARS reports are not verified by AASHE. If you believe any of this information is erroneous or inconsistent with credit criteria, please review the process for inquiring about the information reported by an institution or simply email your inquiry to stars@aashe.org.